It has become a common practice to attach a band to the wrist or ankle of a person or the leg of an animal for identification purposes. When used by a hospital, for example, the band can carry such information as a patient's name, number, medication requirements and instructions such as “do not recessitate”. Information carried on the identification band is useful for correlating patients with medications, specimens and therapeutic treatments. Often information is recorded on the band in the form of a machine readable bar code that is integrated with a computerized patient information data system. Medical uses of identification bands are discussed in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2006/0236578. Similar identification bands can be attached to animals at veterinary and other animal handling facilities. In addition, identification bands are also used at sporting and entertainment events and in other environments.
In a hospital setting, by way of example, an identification band is typically prepared and printed at the time a patient is admitted in accordance with the established procedures of a particular facility. It is desirable to enter information regarding the patient only once, thereby permitting a single information input to be used to generate various forms, file labels, medication and specimen labels, and an identification band. This integrated data entry procedure not only saves time and reduces costs, but also reduces the potential for mistakes and inconsistencies.
It is, therefore, highly desirable that a wrist band or a fabrication sheet from which a wrist band is to be separated be printed at the same time and place that accompanying records and other materials are printed. The wrist band or fabrication sheet should be capable of passing through and being printed on by a printer of the type commonly used as a PC peripheral, e.g., an ink jet or laser jet printer that accepts ordinary paper sheets. The fabrication sheet should be of a size, shape, flexibility and thickness that permits this use without difficulty. It should not irritate the skin of the wearer and should be comfortable when in use. It should be of readily printable material and should retain the printed image without smudging or otherwise deteriorating.
There is, however, a problem that can arise in this regard because the identification band should also be sufficiently durable, tear-resistant, stain-resistant and cleanable to permit it to last throughout a patient's hospital stay, for example. It should not be easily removed inadvertently and should not be transferable from one patient to another. It is desirable that the band be adaptable for use with persons having a wide range of wrist, ankle sizes, (or leg sizes in the case of animals). It has proven difficult to achieve all these objectives. One reason for this problem is that the printer imposes limitations on the maximum thickness, rigidity and durability of the band.
There are two commonly used wrist band styles. One style, referred to here as the wrap-around style, consists of a band that is simply wrapped around the wrist or ankle of a person or the leg of an animal and secured by one or more plastic clasps. The desired information is printed on an exposed portion of the band itself. No part of the band carrying the information extends from or dangles from the portion of the band that wraps around the wrist, ankle or leg. The likelihood of part of the band being caught, damaged or inadvertently removed is thus minimized.
A second style, referred to here as the strap-and-tag style, uses a relatively thin strap that wraps around the wrist, ankle or leg, with a wider tag attached to one end of the strap. The tag is secured at only one end and is thus more easily manipulated to be read or scanned. This strap-and-tag style band provides a larger information field, while avoiding the discomfort and skin irritation that might result from the use of a strap wide enough to carry the same amount of information. Ideally, an identification band is capable of being used in either way.
It is desirable that the band be constructed in such a manner that it can be secured to the wrist or ankle of a person or the leg of an animal by one or more non-reusable, non-transferable snap-on clasps that permit adjustment of the length of the band and can be color coded to convey information.